The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Astrantia plant, botanically known as Astrantia major, and hereinafter refered to by the cultivar name `Roma`.
The new Astrantia is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Hummelo, The Netherlands. The objective of the breeding program was to create new Astrantia cultivars with unique flower colors, early flowering, and continuous flowering.
The new Astrantia originated from a cross made by the Inventor of the Astrantia major cultivar `Ruby Wedding` (not patented) as the male, or pollen, parent with an unnamed selection of Astrantia major var. involucrata Koch as the female, or seed, parent.
The cultivar `Roma` was discovered and selected by the Inventor in 1992 as a flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross in a controlled environment in Hummelo, The Netherlands.
Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by divisions harvested in Hummelo, The Netherlands, has shown that the unique features of this new Astrantia are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.